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Batter out of baseline?

2016/7/15 16:37:40


Question
I recently had an opposing player hit a 1 hopper right back to the pitcher, he threw his bat and returned toward the dugout on the 3rd base line.  The pitcher tossed the ball to the first baseman who shielded his eyes from the sun and had the ball deflect off of him and roll 'out of play'.
Does the batter get to take second base on the play, even after "giving himself up" and returning to the dugout??

Answer
Thomas, the direct answer is yes as long as the batter has not left the field of play.

A couple of things need to be addressed in your question.  First of all, there is no abandonment rule ("giving himself up") in softball.  Any time prior to leaving the field of play, the runner can attempt to finish their run to first.

The second thing to address is the "base line" or "base path".  This line or path is a constantly changing thing based on the position of the runner on the field.  It is always a straight line from the current position of the runner and the the base they are going to.  As long as no one is attempting to tag the runner, they can go wherever they want on the field and no rule says they are out because of this.  Now, if a defender is attempting to tag the runner, the runner can not deviate more that 3 feet from their current base path to avoid the tag or they are out.  
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